Magnussen in running for Marussia drive

Marussia has confirmed it is in talks with McLaren young driver Kevin Magnussen as a possible replacement for Max Chilton next season.

Marussia has confirmed Jules Bianchi will remain at the team next season, but Chilton's future is still in doubt. Magnussen, who has a commanding lead with one race weekend remaining in this year's Formula Renault 3.5 championship, is supported by McLaren, which is keen to get him into Formula One next year.

Marussia sporting director Graeme Lowdon said Magnussen is in the frame along with a number of other drivers.

"Like any team that hasn't confirmed drivers, there are a number of possibilities," Lowdon told Press Association Sport. "Certainly Kevin has impressed in the tests he has done, and as a team that has brought young drivers into Formula One, he is in the frame.

"But there are probably three or four drivers with good potential looking to get into Formula One, and we're talking to a number of them, along with other teams."

However, Lowdon said Chilton is still in the running to retain his drive.

"Max is definitely an option because on the driving side he is doing a really good job," he added. "There has been real progress in a number of areas, and he has formed part of a tightly-knit team. We're really quite keen to see continuity for next year because of the big technical change.

"If we decide to retain the current line-up it would be the first time we go into a new season with two drivers with some experience, so there's something to be said for that. At the moment there is no particular rush. We're just going through all the normal discussions we go through."

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